New and Upcoming Retellings, 2015-2016

It's been like a year since I've listed some new and upcoming retellings! (For a more complete listing of retellings, check out my classic retellings and fairy tale retellings lists.)  I've noticed some trends lately, though I didn't list all the books that fit these as several don't have covers yet.  We have lots of Sherlock Holmes tales (not surprising, since the copyright is up), a handful of Frankenstein tales (some not out until 2017), as well as some lovely obscure fairy tale retellings.  Here are some newly released and upcoming retellings I've discovered.


Tear You Apart by Sarah Cross
This is a companion to her other book, Kill Me Softly (a sleeping beauty retelling).  It came out in January of this year and is a retelling of Snow White.


One Witch at a Time by Stacy DeKeyser
This one is also a companion book; the first one is The Brixen Witch (the Pied Piper).  This one is a retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk, not one that's seen a lot of retellings.  It came out in February of this year. 


Beastkeeper by Cat Hellisen
This is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, about the beast (a girl) and the curse that follows her family.  It came out in February of this year as well.


The Cottage in the Woods by Katherine Coville
As you can probably tell from the cover, this is a retelling of the Goldilocks story, but from the point of view of the bears.  Definitely not many of this fairy tale that I've read.  I'm intrigued!  It came out in February this year.


Valiant by Sarah McGuire
Another unusual fairy tale retelling, this one tackles the Brave Little Taylor.  I've yet to get my hands on it, but I'm interested enough to pick it up.  Arrived in April of this year.


Rook by Sharon Cameron
There have been a handful of Scarlet Pimpernel retellings lately, and here's another that's set in the future.  I'm pretty much a sucker for anything retelling that story, cause it's one of my faves.  Came out in April 2015.


Hold Me Like a Breath by Tiffany A. Schmidt
This one says it's loosely based on the Princess and the Pea, and it's first in a series called Once Upon a Crime Family.  I'm sold! Came out in May 2015.


Lock & Mori by Heather Petty
One of several Sherlock retellings that's come out recently.  This one looks intriguing as an origin story, and Moriarty is a girl (obviously).  Coming out September 2015.


The Beast of Cretacea by Todd Strasser
I'm not sure if this is a straight up retelling of Moby Dick or not, but based solely on the characters of Ishmael and a Captain Ahab, I'm putting it in there.  This is a futuristic tale, set in space.  Coming October 2015.


Winter by Marissa Meyer
If you haven't heard about this one, you've been living under a rock.  Yeah! I'm so excited for it to finally come out - in November. Also, in case you didn't know, a retelling of Snow White.


Teen Frankenstein by Chandler Baker
I'm gonna let you guess which book this one is based on. :)  It's first in a new series called High School Horror, with plans to tackle Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and The Phantom of the Opera in the next books. This one comes out in January 2016.


Blackhearts by Nicole Castroman
This one is a retelling of the tale of Blackbeard, also not something that there's much of (though, I might just be ignorant of others).  It's coming in February of 2016- and I LOVE that cover!


The Shadow Queen by C.J. Redwine
And here is another Snow White retelling, there are so many!  Coming in February of 2016.


The Great Hunt Wendy Higgins
And for another unusual retelling, this one is based on the Singing Bone, a Grimm brothers fairy tale that I know nothing about. Coming in March 2016.


Exit, Pursued by a Bear by E.K. Johnston
Not your typical retelling I believe, as this one "riffs on Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale," and it sounds rather interesting.  Coming next March.


Tru and Nelle by G. Neri
This is also not a straight up kind of retelling, as it's "inspired by the friendship between Truman Capote and Harper Lee."  It sounds rather interesting, nonetheless.  Coming in March 2016.


Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood by Liesl Shurtliff
This is the third in Shurtliff's series, the first two retelling Rumplestiltskin and Jack and the Beanstalk.  I've enjoyed both of them, so I'm eager to try this one as well.  Coming in April next year.


A Fierce and Subtle Poison by Samantha Mabry
And one more unusual retelling, this one is based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story “Rappaccini's Daughter,” which I've never heard of.  Sounds rather interesting and makes me want to find that short story.  Coming in April 2016.


Suffer Love by Ashley Herring Blake
And to round things out, we have a contemporary retelling of Romeo and Juliet.  This one comes out in May 2016.

Any favorites? Any that I missed?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: The Family Romanov by Candace Fleming

The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia by Candace Fleming
Publisher: Random House Children's
Publication date: July 2014
Pages: 304
Source: Library
For: Award winners :)

Summary (from goodreads):

Here is the tumultuous, heartrending, true story of the Romanovs—at once an intimate portrait of Russia's last royal family and a gripping account of its undoing. Using captivating photos and compelling first person accounts, award-winning author Candace Fleming (Amelia Lost; The Lincolns) deftly maneuvers between the imperial family’s extravagant lives and the plight of Russia's poor masses, making this an utterly mesmerizing read

Things I Liked:
I thought this book was really well written and researched. I was fascinated with the details and especially with the glimpses outside the family. They were so painfully unaware of all that went on in their country, it's hard to believe. It is amazing what lengths people will go to to retain power, even if they "don't want it," as Nicholas said several times. I remember going to an exhibit on Nicholas and Alexandra when I was a teen and being super fascinated by their story. It is just so horrifying and the history of the Russian people at this time (and during a number of other times) is so sad that I can't get it out of my head. I know I read a biography (or two) of the Romanovs, but I still felt like I knew almost nothing about the time period and the lower classes. Great book to introduce this period of time to young people!

Things I Didn't Like:
Nothing I can think of!

Read-alikes:
Nicholas and Alexandra by Robert K. Massie (this is one of the books I read about them quite a while ago)

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: none
well, maybe one or two incidental ones

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->->
considering their violent demise, this was expected

Overall rating: *****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Mini Reviews 19

Here are a couple of mini reviews; I didn't have much to say about these ones (or forgot what I wanted to say).


Wednesdays in the Tower by Jessica Day George
This is second in the Castle Glower series, first one was Tuesdays at the Castle, which I really enjoyed.  This one was sweet and rollicky good fun. I like the griffin most of all. The book did, however, seem to kind of lose its way a bit in the middle. I felt like it didn't move us forward a lot in the series until much later and lots of things happen right near the end that aren't entirely clear. But I might read more in the series later.


Waistcoats & Weaponry by Gail Carriger
This is book 3 of the Finishing School Series by Carriger.  Honestly, I wish it was the last.  I tire of the series. I'm ready for it to be over (and expected it to be the last, what with trilogies being the Thing), but there's another book.  Some stuff actually happened in this one, though I can't seem to remember much of it. It's definitely as quirky and weird as the others, if that's your thing.


Midwinterblood by Marcus Sedgwick
This book is super weird, but in a good way.  It is a crazy interesting story of reincarnation and enduring love. I was very much swept away in its atmospheric feeling and the beautiful writing. I did spend a lot of time wondering what was going on. I think that was on purpose.  I read this for the Printz award, and can see why it was chosen.  Still, very strange.  It reminded me of the strange in Chime by Franny Billingsley, which I also really liked.


Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman
I read this because, Neil Gaiman.  Also, I got a review copy in the mail.  Yes!  This is such a fun book.  What a great read-aloud this would be with your kids or in school.  I loved how funny and cheeky and just downright wacky it got.  Will definitely get laughs out of your grade school kids (and older). I only wished there was more when it ended.

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Gabi, a Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero AND Biggie by Derek E. Sullivan

A Karissa Review

Double Feature – A Lamentation upon Swearing

Gabi, a Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero
Publisher: Cinco Punto Press
Publication date: October 2014
Pages: 208

Biggie by Derek E. Sullivan
Publisher: AW Teen
Publication date: March 2015
Pages: 272

Summary for Gabi (from goodreads):

Gabi Hernandez chronicles her last year in high school in her diary: college applications, Cindy's pregnancy, Sebastian's coming out, the cute boys, her father's meth habit, and the food she craves. And best of all, the poetry that helps forge her identity. 

Summary for Biggie (from goodreads):

Henry "Biggie" Abbott is the son of one of Finch, Iowa 's most famous athletes. His father was a baseball legend and his step-dad is a close second. At an obese 300+ pounds though, Biggie himself prefers classroom success to sports. As a perfectionist, he doesn't understand why someone would be happy getting two hits in five trips to the plate. "Forty percent, that's an F in any class," he would say. But what happens when a boy who has spent his life since fourth grade trying to remain invisible is suddenly thrust into the harsh glare of the high school spotlight? 

My Thoughts:

First off, I wish, I wish, I would’ve read Gabi before I read Biggie. See, the sad fact is, I got Gabi the week after I read Biggie, and after reading Biggie, I started Gabi, loved the character, loved the writing, but couldn’t stomach the cussing any more. So I only got part way through Gabi, before I had to put it down. See, in Biggie, there’s a lot of cussing, and in Gabi there’s not quite as much, but still some. And after slogging my way through Biggie, my eyeballs were just in pain.

The thing is, the one star I gave Biggie is just for the last 5 pages. Because I really, really didn’t like the book until the last 5 pages. And then I only sorta liked it. It was funny, my daughter saw me reading it at the beginning, and asked if I liked it. I told her I wasn’t sure. Throughout the next few days of me reading it, she’d ask again if I liked it yet, and I still would say, “Not yet.”

Really, I just didn’t like Biggie or any of his friends. They all are really kinda jerks – and not the type that learn from their jerkiness – they still are going to be jerks in their 20s. So, not only was it hard to read a book where you don’t like any of the characters, but the cussing just got in the way.

So I put these together because if you are considering one of them, go for Gabi. If you’re okay with cussing, pick hers because she’s a way more likable character, and I think you’ll have a better experience overall.

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS for Gabi:
s-factor: #@!%

mrg-factor: XX

v-factor: none

Overall rating:  ***

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS for Biggie:
s-factor: #@!%@!#

mrg-factor: XXX

v-factor: ->->

Overall rating: *
 

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Publication date: July 2014
Pages: 496
Source: Library
For: Fun
Series: The Remnant Chronicles, Book 1

Summary (from goodreads):

A princess must find her place in a reborn world.

She flees on her wedding day.

She steals ancient documents from the Chancellor's secret collection.

She is pursued by bounty hunters sent by her own father.

She is Princess Lia, seventeen, First Daughter of the House of Morrighan.

The Kingdom of Morrighan is steeped in tradition and the stories of a bygone world, but some traditions Lia can't abide. Like having to marry someone she's never met to secure a political alliance.

Fed up and ready for a new life, Lia flees to a distant village on the morning of her wedding. She settles in among the common folk, intrigued when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive—and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an assassin sent to kill her. Deceptions swirl and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—secrets that may unravel her world—even as she feels herself falling in love.

Things I Liked:
Well, I have to admit I was annoyed when Pearson didn't come out and say who was who (ie - we don't know which one is which when the story is told from Lia's perspective).  I kept thinking I knew and then second guessing it.  I think this is what sustained me through pretty much the whole book - I just wanted to figure it out.  In that sense, well played, Mary Pearson! And then the end happened and all the action was pretty much dumped into that last quarter of the book.  I'm intrigued and want to read the sequel, but not sure what to expect.

Things I Didn't Like:
I think I was annoyed by the length a number of times.  Nothing much seems to happen for a long time.  Also, Lia should have been a little smarter when thinking about the consequences of her running away.

Read-alikes:
Reminded me a bit of the Seven Realms by Cinda Williams Chima

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
maybe one or two

mrg-factor: X
some suggestive moments

v-factor: ->->
a bit of fighting happens on page

Overall rating: ****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage